Sports Complex To Open In January

October 15, 1986|By RICCI GRAHAM, Staff Writer

Play ball!

Those words will be music to the ears of sports enthusiasts early next year because the $990,000 North Lauderdale Sports Complex is due to be completed on time and on budget, City Manager Eric Soroka said.

The 16-acre complex on Rock Island Road and Kimberly Boulevard will include four baseball fields, a football field and basketball and racquetball courts.

It also will have a concession stand with an announcer`s booth perched on top to give a view of the playing fields.

Although construction will be finished in two weeks, the complex won`t open until January. That will allow time for grass to grow, sod to settle and fences to be installed.

``The complex is one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken by the city,`` Soroka said. ``It was an unusual project from day one. We wanted to provide a facility we would be proud of and one we could use to market for special tournaments.

``We still have a lot of work cut out for us,`` said Soroka, noting that the scoreboard has to be installed.

The complex will be the primary sports park in the city.

It is part of a $1.2 million park improvement project that started six years ago.

Other projects include the renovation of Highland Park from a baseball field into two soccer fields, the expansion of the soccer and football fields at North Lauderdale Park and the transformation of Saranaro Park into 100 parking spaces for the sports complex.

Those improvements cost more than $200,000.

City officals studied the future growth and needs of residents to determine what type of sports complex to build.

Now that the city has grown to 25,000 residents, or about 90 percent of its growth capacity, Soroka said he is assured that the complex will meet the community`s future needs.

Only $135,000 of city money was used to pay for the park projects.

The bulk of the money was raised though park dedication fees, developer donations and land that the city has sold over the years, Soroka said.

``If you have (those type of fees) in place when the city is going through rapid growth, you can accumulate quite a bit of money,`` Soroka said.

To guarantee proper maintenance, Parks and Recreation Director Ron Ferris said that he has designated times when the park can be used by sports organizations in the city.

He said planting grass every year would be too expensive.

The sports complex was constructed by Hewitt-Kier Construction.

After the completion of the complex, the company will begin construction of an Olympic-size swimming pool in the back of the complex.